Nigel Havers admits doing 'terrible films' for money

Nigel Havers has committed one of the cardinal sins of the acting profession – by admitting that sometimes working for the art just isn't enough.

The star of films including 'Chariots of Fire' and 'Empire of the Sun' has revealed that cash has occasionally found itself being a deciding factor.

“I’ve done a few terrible films for the money, like 'The Burning Season' for Home Box Office,” he admitted in an interview with the Radio Times.

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“This is a job after all, and you con yourself. I live quite well and if I got precious and turned everything down, I wouldn’t work again.”

'The Burning Season', released in 1994, was among the last projects undertaken by actor Raul Julia, and despite Havers' disparagement of the TV movie, it won a host of Emmys and Golden Globe awards, including the Globe for Best Miniseries or TV film.

It starred Julia as Brazilian environmental activist Chico Mendes who was murdered in 1988, and also featured Luis Guzman and Edward James Olmos.

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In the same interview, Havers, who is currently best known for appearances in 'Coronation Street' and 'Downton Abbey', said that he was upset he didn't turn up on the list of celebrities whose phones were hacked by the News of the World.

“I’d love to have been on that list. I’m still hoping,” he said. “I’m serious. I wouldn’t have minded in the slightest if they hacked into my phone. It’s a shame I wasn’t important enough.”